Black oil sunflower seeds

[Clucking Caper]

Hey friends.

This may be a dumb question and I feel I know the answer but are black oil sunflower seeds for wild birds from walmart acceptable to feed to chickens ?

 

[SilverBirds]

Chickens can safely eat whole sunflower seeds.

 

[Clucking Caper]

Chickens can safely eat whole sunflower seeds.

Thank you

 

[saysfaa]

I agree chickens can safely eat them - as an individual seed type thing. They have too much fat to safely feed very many of them. A few seeds per day per chicken is less than "very many" if the rest of the chickens' diet is good.

 

[Sally PB]

Commonly referred to as BOSS here. They can be a nice treat for chickens. I like to toss some (1/4-1/3 cup for 10 hens) around the run so that they run around a bit to get them.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yes, BOSS is safe as long as they have grit to grind it up in their gizzard and you do not overdo it.

I cannot come up with a link to that specific bag of Great Value BOSS to see if it gives an analysis of nutrients. Boss is typically fairly high in protein and oil. The oil is where you don't want to feed them too much. They need a certain amount of fats and oils for healthy body function but too much can cause some issues. So limit how much you give them.

Some breeders that show chickens feed them a small amount of BOSS. The oil in BOSS helps make the feathers shiny. It doesn't take much, just a few seeds will do. I do not feed them myself so I don't know a safe amount but I'd think two or three tablespoons per bird would be more than enough.

 

[Penpal]

You might save money by buying it from Tractor Supply or an elevator/feed store.

 

[Sic]

Hey friends.

This may be a dumb question and I feel I know the answer but are black oil sunflower seeds for wild birds from walmart acceptable to feed to chickens ?

Chickens can eat the sunflower seeds, not as a sole ration obviously, but as an addition to the diet. Whether that brand is acceptable or not depends on if you raise chickens on organic feed or not. I buy organic pesticide free as that's my preference and sprout them for myself, my dogs, and my poultry.

 

[Clucking Caper]

You might save money by buying it from Tractor Supply or an elevator/feed store.

Canadian living on an island with no such luxuries lol

 

[Penpal]

Clucking, if you ever escape from the island, a large bag of BOSS lasts a long longtime.